Band Geeks!, Factory Girls, Hostage Song and Iron Curtain are among the eight new musicals that will be presented in Manhattan this fall as part of the National Alliance for Musical Theatre's Festival of New Musicals.

Presented Oct. 19-20 in Manhattan, the annual event affords emerging and established theatre writers the opportunity to showcase developing works for an industry-only audience comprised of producers from around the world. Many of the new works find life at regional companies, as well as Off-Broadway and Broadway runs.

Founded in 1985 and based in New York City, The National Alliance for Musical Theatre is a national service organization dedicated exclusively to musical theatre. Kathy Evans is the executive director for the organization with members sprinkled throughout 33 states and six countries.

The 2009 NAMT Festival of New Musical Selections follow:

Band Geeks! Book by Tommy Newman and Gordon Greenberg Lyrics by Gaby Alter and Tommy Newman Music by Mark Allen, Gaby Alter and Tommy Newman Concept by Tommy Newman "Band Geeks! is a high-stepping tribute to high school marching bands and misfits everywhere. With just nine members and dwindling funds, the Cuyahoga High Marching Beavers are close to extinction. When a troubled athlete is relegated to their ranks, Elliott, the tuba-playing band captain and Laura, his best friend, must find a way to unite the band, overcome their pride and embrace their inner geek."

Factory Girls By Creighton Irons and Sean Mahoney "At the dawn of the American Industrial Revolution in 1844, Sarah Bagley leaves her New Hampshire farm to work, socialize, and write with thousands of young women in the growing textile mills of Lowell, Massachusetts. When conditions deteriorate, Sarah risks everything they have gained to fight the 'soulless corporation.' With rock, funk and folk music, Factory Girls captures the passion and upheaval of a time in American history when, for better or worse, our country chose to leave the farm behind."

Hostage Song Book by Clay McLeod Chapman Music and lyrics by Kyle Jarrow "Bound and blindfolded in a war-torn country, two hostages take refuge in music, memory and each other in this new indie-rock musical. But the further into their fantasy world the two of them go, the more the space between reality and escape blurs."

How Can You Run with a Shell On Your Back? By Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler "After-school detention becomes an adventure when a stranger shows six students the power of a good story. The Tortoise and the Hare, The Ant and the Grasshopper, Androcles and the Lion... Aesop's timeless fables take an entertaining turn in this new musical that reveals universal truths through appealing, age-old allegories."

Iron Curtain Book by Susan DiLallo Music by Stephen Weiner Lyrics by Peter Mills "New York, 1954: two hapless songwriters are kidnapped by the KGB, brought to Moscow, and forced to 'fix' a Communist Propaganda musical. Iron Curtain is a madcap farce filled with divas and dominatrixes, secrets and spies, and mishaps and misdirects, as our heroes desperately try to get back home."

It Shoulda Been You Book by Brian Hargrove Music by Barbara Anselmi Lyrics by Brian Hargrove and others "In a world where nothing is what it seems — religions collide, plots are hatched, pacts are made, and secrets exposed - hope is found where you least expect it. Is it Iran? Is it Iraq? No, it’s just the Steinberg Wedding. Come see the truth unveiled."

Memory Is the Mother of All Wisdom Book and Lyrics by Sara Cooper Music by Zach Redler "Memory Is The Mother Of All Wisdom is a two-person comic tragedy about the troubled relationship of a woman who has just been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and her estranged daughter who moves back home to take care of her."

Ripper By Duane Nelsen "In this Victorian thriller, the PennyWise Music Hall is home to an illusionist who saws women in half while real murders are taking place on the streets outside. Reporter Chester Talbot sets out to unravel the story, but what he sees may not be what it seems." Casting and the location of the NAMT Festival of New Musicals will be announced shortly.

While the Festival is created for producers and industry members, the general public can obtain free, stand-by tickets the day of the festival.

Musicals previously presented in NAMT's Festival of New Musicals include Vanities, Dangerous Beauty, Emma, The Gypsy King, The Story of My Life, Tinyard Hill, The Drowsy Chaperone, Thoroughly Modern Millie, I Love You Because, Songs for A New World, Striking 12, Summer of '42, Ace, Children of Eden, Harold and Maude, Honk! and Meet John Doe.